Are We On The Verge Of War With Iran?
By Michael Snyder/Economic Collapse Blog January 29, 2024
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U.S. lawmakers are calling for military strikes inside Iran in the aftermath of a horrific terror attack that left three U.S. service members dead and dozens wounded. So if the U.S. does hit targets inside Iranian territory, how will the Iranians respond?
It is theoretically possible that they could back down, but I doubt it. All of the airstrikes that we have conducted so far against Iranian-backed terror groups in Iraq and Syria have not caused them to back down. And the airstrikes that we have hit the Houthis in Yemen with have not caused them to back down either. The truth is that the U.S. is already at war in the Middle East, and it appears that it could soon take an apocalyptic turn.
U.S. forces in the Middle East have been attacked time after time over the past couple of months, but Sunday's attack was the first one that actually killed members of the U.S. military...
Three U.S. service members were killed and dozens may be wounded after an unmanned aerial drone attack on U.S. forces stationed in northeastern Jordan near the Syrian border, President Joe Biden and U.S. officials said on Sunday.
Biden blamed Iran-backed groups for the attack, the first deadly strike against U.S. forces since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in October and sent shock waves throughout the Middle East.
It was just a matter of time before something like this happened.
Overall, U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria have been attacked more than 150 times since October 17th...
Iranian-backed militias have mounted more that 150 attacks since Oct. 17 on bases occupied by U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria, according to the Pentagon. The majority of the attacks have been with rockets and one-way attack drones, most of which have been intercepted.
When someone attacks your forces more than 150 times, you are at war with them.
Anyone that thinks otherwise is just being delusional.
In response to Sunday's attack, Joe Biden told the world that "we will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner of our choosing"...
"While we are still gathering the facts of this attack, we know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq," Biden said in a statement.
"Have no doubt - we will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner of our choosing," he said.
Needless to say, this was not strong enough for many Republican hawks in Congress. Here are just a few of their quotes that have been compiled by Axios...
-Mitch McConnell: Senate Minority Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called for "serious, crippling costs" to Iran, "not only on front-line terrorist proxies, but on their Iranian sponsors who wear American blood as a badge of honor."
-Lindsey Graham: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), said in a statement the attacks the U.S. has carried out on Iranian proxies outside Iran "will not deter Iranian aggression," calling to "strike targets of significance inside Iran."
-Tom Cotton: "The only answer to these attacks must be devastating military retaliation against Iran's terrorist forces, both in Iran and across the Middle East," said Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). "Anything less will confirm Joe Biden as a coward unworthy of being commander-in-chief."
-John Cornyn: Sen. John Cornyn, in a post on the social media site X, said: "Target Tehran," later specifying that he wants the U.S. to strike Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. and its Quds Force branch.
Okay, so let's imagine that Biden does what they want.
Would the Iranians respond by launching missiles at U.S. targets in the region?
And how would we respond if the Iranians made such a move?
When it comes to geopolitics, one must always be thinking several moves ahead.
Meanwhile, one of Israel's most prominent politicians is warning that Iran has become a "legitimate target" for Israeli missiles...
Iran is now a "legitimate target" for Israeli missile strikes, one of the country's most senior ministers has told the Telegraph, raising the prospect of an all-out war with Tehran.
In a wide-ranging interview, Nir Barkat, Israel's economy minister, also said Palestinians from the West Bank would never be allowed to work in the country again and would be replaced by more than a quarter of a million imported foreign workers.
He also complained that the war in Gaza had not been fought aggressively enough.
Those that are urging military strikes against targets inside Iran are assuming that the Iranians only possess conventional weapons.
But what if this isn't true?
In fact, for a long time there have been many that have tried to warn us that this isn't true.
The Iranians are not showing us all their cards, and they have been preparing for this showdown for decades.
Interestingly, the Iranians just launched three new satellites into space...
Iran says it has successfully launched three indigenous satellites into orbit using the Simorgh carrier rocket, marking the first time the country has simultaneously sent three satellites into space.
The satellites launched early on Sunday include Mahda, weighing 32 kg, and two nano-satellites, Keyhan 2 and Hatef 1, of less than 10 kg, sent to a minimum orbit of 450 kilometers (279 miles) and a maximum of 1,100 km (683.5 mi), state media reported, citing the public relations wing of the Defense Ministry.
The Simorgh satellite carrier that carried the three satellites to space has been developed by Iran's Defense Ministry, the ministry statement noted.
It is believed that these satellites have been sent into orbit for the purpose of guiding ballistic missiles.
We are so close to the unthinkable. Once missiles start flying all over the region, the Middle East will never be the same again.
Meanwhile, the Chinese continue to probe Taiwan's defenses...
Taiwan's defense ministry announced on Saturday that over 30 Chinese warplanes were headed toward its country, in addition to navy ships.
Thirty-three aircraft were sent by the Chinese People's Liberation Army from 6 a.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday, officials said. The aircraft included SU-30 fighters.
An apocalyptic conflict in the Middle East would give China the perfect opportunity to try to "reunite" with Taiwan by force.
So let's keep a close eye on the Chinese.
And let us not forget about the Russians. Over the weekend, they took even more territory from the Ukrainians.
This is a time of "wars and rumors of wars", and those that are familiar with my work will not be surprised to hear that I believe that things will greatly escalate later this year.
We should hope for peace, but we should also prepare for war.
Because war is definitely coming, and it will shake billions out of their current state of complacency.
Originally published at The Economic Collapse Blog - reposted with permission.
